A Hero's Way
by TheNameIsErronBlack
Summary: Abandoned by his comrades in his hour of greatest need, Beast Boy must do the unthinkable: he must ask Raven to see the new Captain America movie with him. BBxRae
"Dude, you cannot be serious right now."

"Sorry, BB, but that's the way it's gotta be. Ha! See what I did there?"

Beast Boy could not believe it was happening again. He was once again abandoned by Cyborg, his once ever-faithful movie-watching comrade.

"But you know I've been looking forward to this for months!" He paced around his room. "And you cannot expect to watch it with Starfire. I developed a migraine after you basically forced me to see Star Wars with her because you were off on 'top secret business'," Beast Boy made sure to give a ridiculous inflection at the end of that thought to demean Cyborg. "Seriously. I will never forgive you for that. First off, she takes forever to pick out a snack, then she had to take out a second mortgage to pay for it all, and then she interrupted my viewing experience every 5 seconds. Friend Beast Boy, is the man with the T-shaped sword the one I hear referred to as Dark Vader?" He did his best impersonation of his friend's curiosity-infused voice.

"Oh, suck it up. You love talking about your knowledge of movies. I gotta run."

Cyborg abruptly concluded his audience to Beast Boy's anger. This was ridiculous! Cyborg knew how much Beast Boy was looking forward to seeing _Captain America: Civil War,_ and Cyborg and Beast Boy saw every big superhero movie the first day it came out. There had to be some sort of alternative path. Robin was entirely out of the question, as he loathed superhero movies, (They were 'entirely unrealistic' from his perspective)Starfire would give him a headache, Cyborg was a total jerk, so the only real option wa-

 _Raven._

Beast Boy could feel the color drain from his face as he came to the realization that the only way he would be able to see a movie he had spent a year looking forward to was to ask Raven, who loathed action movies and detested Beast Boy's taste in movies even more vociferously, to accompany him to a screening. Getting Raven to tolerate his existence was a Herculean effort as it was, and Beast Boy knew he had a better chance of destroying the Colossus of Rhodes with a half-broken toffee hammer then getting her to watch an action movie with him. Then again, Beast Boy noticed that Raven had somewhat softened in recent years. She refrained from deriding him with her acidic snark too much, at least relative to how she dispensed it at regular intervals in years prior, and he knew they had forged a genuine emotional connection after everything they had struggled against. If nothing else, he knew Raven wouldn't hurl him against the wall for asking. It couldn't hurt, he hoped.

After spending a few minutes psyching himself up, Beast Boy found the empath in the common room, predictably, reading a novel. She didn't seem to acknowledge Beast Boy's presence.

"Hey, uh, Rae." He carefully lowered himself onto the couch.

"Beast Boy."

Beast Boy clamped his hands together. The moment of truth drew ever closer.

"So, uh, Rae, I was wondering if I could ask you something."

While Beast Boy's entrance had minimal effect on Raven's reading, his query forced her eyebrow to arch and her eyes to shoot over, piercing his very soul. "Yes?" She replied, with more than a few hints of trepidation and skepticism in her voice.

Injected by a modicum of confidence, Beast Boy continued. "So, Cyborg is a total jerk and Robin and Starfire makes movies a painful experience, so I was wondering if you would want to see the new Captain America movie," He concluded his question by flashing his toothy grin to soften her up. "I mean with me. Do you want to see it with me, is what I'm trying to ask. Tonight. Do you want to see the new Captain America movie with me tonight?" Despite his flash of confidence, Beast Boy still found himself fumbling over his words when speaking with Raven. She somehow found a way to unnerve him with her mere presence.

Beast Boy detected the slightest hint of a smirk on Raven's face. "Fine."

Reflexively, Beast Boy could feel his eyebrow arch. "What? Did you just say yes?"

Raven let out a small sigh as she closed her novel. "I'm more than aware that you've been looking forward to this movie for several months now and it's readily apparent that your pestering will be endless until I cave in to your demands. Putting up any sort of resistance would be meaningless."

Beast Boy couldn't contain his jubilation as an all-encompassing smile emerged and he held his fists up. Raven said yes to watching a superhero movie with him! To him! Beast Boy! "Yes! You will not regret this, Rae!" He hopped over the back of the couch to get a change of clothes.

Raven watched her green-skinned teammate speed to his room as she let a tiny smile pierce her façade of dispassionate loathing. "I'm sure I won't."

* * *

" _Oh crap."_

Frantically hurling himself through his wardrobe, Beast Boy felt a steady sense of panic settle into his system. Normally his repertoire of clothing was more than sufficient to get through the struggles of life, but this was an encounter like no other; this was Raven. He had to be dressed to the nines for Raven. He considered his impeccably stylish suit jacket he had gotten for a fairly reasonable price. That could work. Beast Boy was a bit of a goofball, but he was aware of the fact that he held the capacity to clean up nice when he put in the effort.

" _Wait. Is this a date?"_

The suit jacket was something he saved for when wooing a beautiful lady was on the cards, but this was Raven. This was absolutely, positively, unequivocally _not_ a date. Raven was his friend. He knew putting on something so formal would communicate the wrong message and completely ruin the night, but he also couldn't be too casual since, again, this was Raven. Classy, elegant, high-society worthy Raven. He settled on a plain red long-sleeve shirt and jeans. Not terribly formal, not too casual. It struck equilibrium. It was perfect for his not-date with Raven.

With new-found confidence and new-found clothing, Beast Boy returned to the common room to find his teammate reading her novel. "And I thought Starfire took eternity and a day getting dressed."

Beast Boy rolled his eyes fondly as he appraised Raven's change of clothing. "Hey, I can be-" He stopped himself as he got a better look at Raven. She took notice.

"What? Is something wrong?" She shot out with a degree of worry infused in her voice as she looked over at Beast Boy.

"Nothing. You just..." The correct verbiage escaped him. "You just look nice, Rae." She really did. There was something so pleasant about seeing Raven in casual clothing. She looked…good, Beast Boy decided. Good.

Raven darted her face away from Beast Boy's scrutiny. "Thank you," She squeaked out. "We should likely make our way to the theater now. I don't want to hear your complaints about missing the previews."

* * *

"Oh. My. Goodness. That was incredible!"

Beast Boy had remained completely oblivious to Raven's desire to exit for the entirety of the credits and only gave his thoughts on the film when he and Raven returned to the streets adjacent to the theater. Something told Raven that Beast Boy enjoyed it a great deal.

"I mean, I thought it was gonna be awesome, but it was even more awesome than that!" He held his hands in the air as he and Raven walked the temperate streets of Jump City on the twilight of spring. This was Raven's favorite time of the year. It struck a balance between not frigidly cold but not excruciatingly hot.

"I'm honestly not even sure where to start. There was just so much to love! The action was incredible, the story was like a dagger to the heart, and that freaking airport fight scene!" If pressed, Raven would say she had little patience for Beast Boy's fanaticism, but she privately admitted to herself years ago that it was part of what made her like him to the extent she did. His constantly radiant, dorky charm was incredibly endearing, and seeing him in this excited state made it particularly difficult to dismiss its infectious nature. "Did you see when Black Panther was all like 'whe-sha'! But then Ant-Man was like: 'wa-bam'!" He stopped his gesturing as he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and a dash of red painted his face, only further enhancing his endearing qualities in Raven's mind. "But, more importantly, what did you think of it?"

She saw no point in straining to keep her smile down. "I have to admit, it was rather enjoyable," Despite her bottom-of-the-barrel expectations, Raven found herself liking the film quite a bit. She particularly enjoyed that the ideologically fueled conflict between allies stood above the action rather than the other way around. She found something appealing and relatable in The Avengers and their superheroic bond. "I was quite fond of the Scarlet Witch character."

"I thought you would," Beast Boy could not be happier. Not only was the movie incredible, but Raven actually liked it! Raven never liked _anything_ he recommended. This was essentially equivocal to Haley's Comet passing by Earth and its trail painting the form of the winning Super-Mega Jackpot numbers. The one thing Beast Boy dreaded now was that his night was Raven was over, and he desperately desired to keep his string of luck going for as long as humanly possible. "Hey, would you want to get something to eat? I'm famished."

"That would be nice, especially after you ate all the popcorn." Raven gave him a small but wicked grin.

"Hey, that's why I bought you chocolate raisins. I warned you that would happen." He gave her one in return. Beast Boy detected a small bout of fluttering in his stomach at Raven's acceptance. The only obstacle now was deciding where to go. He couldn't go to some cheap fast food place, Raven deserved far better than that, but he also couldn't take her somewhere super-duper fancy, as he wasn't even sure where could get a seat.

" _Where to go…"_ He pondered. _"Where to…go!"_

This was perfect. They were about 2 blocks away from Jake's, a sort of not-terribly fancy but also sit-downy place. Like his clothing, it struck the perfect balance for his not-date.

* * *

"I am deeply sorry, sir, but I'm afraid the waiting period encompasses two hours."

A brick had been placed in Beast Boy's stomach. He was a total fool to think he could get a table at one of the city's most popular eateries in an instant like that. Now Raven would have to subsist on cheap fast food garbage. She deserved far better.

"Sorry, Rae." He couldn't meet her eyes.

"It's perfectly fine, Beast Boy. I wasn't terribly hungry anyw-"

"What treachery is this?!"

A well-dressed man with a haircut Beast Boy believed could accurately be described as "snazzy" power-walked his way over to where Beast Boy and Raven were standing as the two bewildered superheroes exchanged perplexed glances.

"You were willing to permit these two to wait hours for a decent meal? My God, man, have you no decency? Have you no shame?" Raven found that his wild gesturing put Beast Boy's to shame in terms of energy and passion. "Mister Beast Boy, Miss Raven, I implore your forgiveness for my lackey's self-evident dearth of taste and manners," He rigorously shook their hands. "Please, come this way. Let me personally seat you at our finest table."

What a turn of events. Beast Boy contemplated if he should play the lottery with the luck that attached to him as he and Raven settled into their seats at a table overlooking the west-end of Jump City. The manager, Beast Boy presumed was _the_ Jake, took it upon himself to bring over candles. "Your waitress will be joining you in but a moment." With that, he raced off with near-superhuman speed towards the kitchen.

Though she said she wasn't hungry, Beast Boy detected a slight growl from Raven's stomach, and he could sense she approved of his selection. Beast Boy had great taste, after all.

"Man, things are really going my way today." Beast Boy mused as he and Raven acclimated to their surroundings.

"For once."

The man Beast Boy assumed to be Jake returned with a young waitress who bore an uncanny resemblance to the manager in question. "Mister Beast Boy, Miss Raven, this is Joanna. She's our most expedient waitress," He was almost hoping for a sign of approval at his presentation. "Anything your heart desires, she will have it for you. And, of course, everything is free of charge. You've paid more than enough for the people of this city." With that, he dashed away as Joanna handed the two their menus.

"Please, take your time. I'm here at your beck and call."

Raven gave a polite nod as she and Beast Boy scanned her menu.

"I'll have a chopped salad with balsamic vinaigrette."

"And I'll have a veggie burger with a side of fries. Oh, and a vanilla milkshake."

Joanna graciously took their menus and raced off to the kitchen.

"Only a salad? I thought you were starving." Beast Boy asked, genuinely concerned. He didn't want Raven to starve or not indulge herself simply to live up to some ridiculous standard of beauty.

"Well my conception of starving and your conception of starving reside on two distinct ends of the spectrum." Raven fondly recalled all the times she would find Beast Boy and Cyborg tearing their way through a pile of pizza boxes.

"I'm just saying you can have whatever you want. You don't have to have a salad."

Though she knew Beast Boy would sooner walk on hot coals than insult her in any capacity, this was the perfect time to leap on him. Teasing Beast Boy was one of her favorite hobbies. "Are you trying to make me self-conscious about my weight?"

As she hoped, the color instantly drained from Beast Boy's face as his face took on an expression somewhere between disgust and petrifying terror. "N-no! Definitely not! You do not have to adjust your weight at all! You don't have to change anything about your appearance, Rae. I like everything the way it is." Raven felt her heart skip a beat as he said it. She knew he was only doing it to mollify his innocuous comment, but it pleased Raven nevertheless. She had what she wanted.

"If you say so." She remarked nonchalantly.

* * *

Raven found the food to be just as satisfying as it was appetizing, even by her own lofty standards. Beast Boy however, went through his massive veggie burger at a rate that impressed Raven because he actually paced himself like a respectable human being. She swiped a French Fry from Beast Boy's plate, dipped it into his milkshake, and bit in, letting the sweet taste envelope her senses.

"What? No comment?"

Beast Boy cocked an eyebrow at Raven's question. "You're allowed to have my fries or my milkshake. What's mine is yours."

Before Raven could get a thought out, she had to shift her gaze as the manager returned.

"I truly hate to interject, but I must know if our meal is satisfactory. I'm Jake Sullivan, the manager of this establishment, and I obviously take a special interest when individuals of such esteem partake in my meager restaurant."

Raven and Beast Boy exchanged glances as they agreed in unison that they both enjoyed their meals.

"It was totally delicious."

"As my colleague put so eloquently, the meal was quite good."

Intense relief washed over his face. "That is good to hear. You know, I hate to interrupt this romantic evening, but I just wanted to express my gratitude on a more personal level."

Beast Boy nearly choked on his milkshake as Raven felt her face practically combust.

"Oh my, is something the matter?"

Raven's eyes danced around between the room, Beast Boy, and Jake. Admittedly, she didn't…hate the idea of going on a date with Beast Boy, and this night _did_ at least closely resemble a date. The movie, the romantic dinner, but she was totally uncertain of how she truly felt and, perhaps more importantly, how Beast Boy felt. She was almost certain she would've been able to detect if Beast Boy had any sort of deeper feelings for her as that was more or less her purpose in life and he felt everything with such constant passion, but she was totally in the dark.

"No, no,' Beast Boy struggled mightily to regain his composure. "Please, continue."

Jake waited several seconds until he was certain that both his audience members were of sound mind. "Well, I just wanted to thank you. Joanna, my daughter, has been a fan of your superhero collective for many years now, and the two of you were always her personal favorites. She would scour the internet and magazines to get any piece of information she could about your personal lives because she always said that you two were 'destined for one another'," He gave a small chuckle as the Titans were each forced to once again contend with the fierce blush that adorned their faces at the possibility of the two of them dating. "Anyway, I doubt you remember this, but you saved my daughter's life around two years ago. She was walking around midtown and that shaved ape with the brass knuckles hurled a piece of rubble at her, but you, Miss Raven, shielded her while Mister Beast Boy fought off…whoever that was. Now she's attending medical school because she said she wants to help people just like the Teen Titans do."

Beast Boy and Raven once again shared curious glances. "No need to thank us. It's what we do. And you're daughter was a pretty great waitress." He flashed Jake a smile.

Jake returned one in kind. "Of course, you're superheroes, but you deserve to be rewarded. I simply wanted to express my gratitude. Additionally, you and any of your colleagues have a table open any day, any time. Everything is of course free of charge. You two have a wonderful evening."

* * *

Like a true gentleman, Beast Boy escorted Raven to her room. "So, I'd say that was a pretty good night."

"Even if I have to agree. The movie was good and we had a great meal."

Beast Boy rubbed the back of his neck as Raven slid her hands into her pockets, both still completely uncertain of what to make of this whole night.

"Well, I'm exhausted, so I bid you farewell."

Before her door could shut, Beast Boy called to Raven. "Rae, wait."

"Yes?"

What was it about Raven that made him so painfully awkward? She was just her teammate and friend, yet she drove him berserk. "Would you like to watch the other Captain America movies with me sometime? I think you would like them. Honestly."

Raven contemplated Beast Boy's request. "Sure thing. I don't believe I have anything to do tomorrow."

Beast Boy flashed his toothy grin. "Excellent. It's a date."

In that moment, more than anything, Beast Boy's greatest desire was to acquire super speed, knock out Rip Hunter and the rest of the Legends of Tomorrow, highjack the Wave-Rider, travel though time, and prevent his birth. Perhaps then he might be able to do something right. He prepared himself to face a painful demise.

Mercifully, Raven gave him an exuberant smile. "Yes. Yes it is."

With his nerves ready to explode, Beast Boy went off for a good night's sleep. He had to get ready for tomorrow. He had a big day ahead of him, after all.


End file.
